Smashing your brand

Anyone seen the new Hyundai commercial for their new Gensis Coupe? If not check it out here.

What struck me about the ad actually had little to do with the Hyundai brand strategy, because, for one, I don't think Hyundai has anywhere to go but up in terms of image, and two, I think the spot actually does a pretty decent job of communicating the "fast and the furious" mentality that the sporty little race car is going for. What did bug me was the Smashing Pumpkins' presence in it.

Is this really the association they want the public to have of their music and the people who listen to it? It's hard for me to believe they really thought this one through, because, as a long time fan, this really turned me off.

I've listened to the Smashing Pumpkins, on and off, for well over ten years now, and I have never thought of them as a group that supported the reckless, street racing culture. In fact, I don't know that I had ever put a specific label on their audience or the culture that I was a part of. And, I think that was the point...

Why, as a band (brand), would you broadcast to millions of people (by the way this was intended to be a Super Bowl spot), a VERY specific, cultural association? The strategy that I think many bands (brands) benefit from is being relatively undefined. They allow current and prospective fans and followers to cast their own feelings and experiences into the brand. Rob Walker illustrates this strategy really well in his book, Buying In. Think, Red Bull or Nike...Sure these brands have distinct personalities and associations--that is the essence of a brand, but they stay broad enough that they leave the door open for anyone to participate, or at least feel like they have the option.

Way to go, Billy Corgan, you've shut the door on me...your music has officially been associated with street racing punks. I never saw it coming.